North Sound Kettlebell opens in Arlington

For those who are looking for a new kind of workout, North Sound Kettlebell in Arlington has opened to the public and offers classes in using kettle bells for cardiovascular and strength training.

By Lauren Salcedo • July 17, 2013 3:58 pm
Trainer Aaron Ransford demonstrates how to use a kettlebell at the gym he opened with fellow trainer Lucy Hansen
Trainer Aaron Ransford demonstrates how to use a kettlebell at the gym he opened with fellow trainer Lucy Hansen

ARLINGTON — For those who are looking for a new kind of workout, North Sound Kettlebell in Arlington has opened to the public and offers classes in using kettle bells for cardiovascular and strength training.

Co-owners Aaron Ransford and Lucy Hansen have been certified as kettlebell instructors and praise the tool’s effectiveness at building strength.

“I was always a seeker of effective ways to train,” said Ransford. “I started reading books by Pavel Tsatsouline, a Russian author who introduced the use of kettlebells to the West, and I got hooked.”

A kettlebell is a weighted iron ball with a handle that comes in a variety of weights. It did not originate as a tool for exercise, however.

“It originated in Russia as a way for farmers to measure big amounts of grain and produce,” said Ransford. “Pretty soon the Soviets started picking it up for athletes, and then the military, and that’s how it was introduced here in the U.S.”

Ransford began training through a company out of Everett and decided to open his own business with Hansen, whom he considered to be his best student.

“I was once very overweight, almost 200 pounds,” said Hansen, a 5-foot-2 woman who now resembles a professional athlete in terms of muscle tone. “I decided it was time to make a change, and I started running and changed my diet. It was late in life that I started doing this, and with running I got burnt out. I prepaid for a year at Gold’s Gym, hoping that would get me motivated, but I only went a handful of times. And then I found kettlebells and for some reason I fell in love with it. I was addicted. There is always someone there to help you and the results were so fast. I couldn’t believe it. And that’s what made me want to learn more. Aaron is a very motivated trainer. A lot of the people that started with Aaron are still here and come day after day.”

The two trainers are hoping that their clients will build strength, rather than simply work out to the point of exhaustion.

“We are not about getting skinny,” said Hansen. “We are about getting stronger and getting fit.”

North Sound Kettlebell, located at 19007 61st Ave. NE, Unit 2, in Arlington, offers a free first class. For more information visit http://northsoundkettlebell.com.